In this months issue of Mercedes Classic was a little article about the Czech artist Vaclav Zapadlik. He grew up in Communist Czechoslovakia but his passion for cars (and music) began early on. Since the fall of the Soviet Union and communism in Eastern Europe, Vaclav has traveled around America and Europe showing his work and accepting many awards.
The interesting thing about Vaclav is that he draws without pictures. Everything you see in his paintings is drawn from memory. Many of his motor racing scenes are pure imagination, such as the one you see below with Mercedes SSK and Bentley 6.5 liter - drawn from what Vaclav called his "imaginary world". Zapadlik actually reads about interesting automotive stories and then paints his vision of how it looked.
Check out the scans below. I have enlarged his awesome painting! I am stunned by his work! This man is an inspiration. :rockon:
The Scans
(http://img210.imageshack.us/img210/9615/mbartist01zc8.th.jpg) (http://img210.imageshack.us/my.php?image=mbartist01zc8.jpg) (http://img48.imageshack.us/img48/2558/mbartist02fg0.th.jpg) (http://img48.imageshack.us/my.php?image=mbartist02fg0.jpg)
1936 Grand Prix of Germany. Vaclav has included some famous people in his painting. Can you tell who?
(http://img359.imageshack.us/img359/5684/grandprix1pu2.th.jpg) (http://img359.imageshack.us/my.php?image=grandprix1pu2.jpg)
1931 Targa Florio depecting a Mercedes SSK ahead of a Bentley 6.5 liter.
(http://img145.imageshack.us/img145/2402/grandprix2ot8.th.jpg) (http://img145.imageshack.us/my.php?image=grandprix2ot8.jpg)